Scions of Avarice: Mercenary Blues

[Pyrade]

Miriel
Miriel sat up as the elevator arrived on the cargo bay's level, waiting to see whom it was that had arrived. She smiled as she saw the captain of the vessel arrive dressed in some rather fetching elven garb. What Miriel did not expect was the spider-mechs that scuttled out of the elevator with Sorschasta. As they rushed over to her and began rubbing up against her legs she giggled and reached down to rub the odd little creatures' abdomens.
"Oh my word they are adorable!"
She squealed in delight as she picked one up and began to make an odd somewhat rhythmic noise. It sounded similar in pitch to perhaps a lullaby, but there were no words, simply two tones which followed each other in quick succession.

As the one rubbing her legs scuttled of, and the other seemed to want to be returned to the floor, she obliged gently.
"Perhaps. The AI itself may have been constructed by Hisen. It is far easier for us to create AI than it is for other races to code them."
She said with a smile and a giggle.
"But I shall be sure to be gentle with them. I feel I may see a lot of them during my stay."
She said as an idea occurred to her, causing her to smile a little wider,
"If we could get hold of some Karadellian plant matter somewhere, I might be able to create a few more to help out around the ship . . . Of course we'll need quite a bit of capital, so after a few jobs perhaps . . . Or if we come across any drones in our travels."
She mused aloud, mostly for her own benefit as she began pondering the idea of capturing and converting some stray drones out in the universe. When Sorschasta brought up the topic of jobs she smiled and nodded,
"I am ready. What do we have to choose from so far?"
She asked curiously, excited to finally be starting.

[The Flame Dawn]

Ishe seemed content with the medical files. While she wasn't very familiar with the members of the team, the medical files and her medical education gave her a decent idea what to give and not to give to people. She placed the medical files back in the drawer and walked out. She saw the two spider droids and looked at them in fascination, but quickly focused on the elf as she began to state that they needed to discus contracts.

[Protestant England and Germany]

Ragnar

"Gods, how do these monkeys do this?" Ragnar thought as he struggled to fit into one of the elevators. "These pointy eared monkeys think nothing of utility and just build it so they and they alone can use it." He cursed as the doors closed on part of his tail, tearing hair off and threatening to crush his tail. He was feeling like a fool, and to him, the only thing worse would be if he was stuck in here with the dishonorable Tauran Cow. It opened and he stumbled out, catching himself on a table, inches from hitting the cold metallic floor. He looked up to see the elf standing there. "I have a question for you, monkey." Ragnar growled as he steadied himself. "Why is it that your elevators and corridors are so cramped. I cannot get around this ship without looking like a fool."

[Aelosia]

One choice...One job

"I'm sure we will get spoils after jobs. We call them archeotech in mercenary company slang. I'm pretty sure most of us will agree in leaving you with your choice of them so you can work your magic around", said the elf to Miriel smiling. "And Ragnar", she said, her smile steady and sincere. "I am aware this ship was built with smaller frames in mind. It is, after all, an elven made ship. I know the largest amongst us...", and here she paused to point with her chin at Ragnar first, then at Boklov and Durz, "Might find a little bit more difficult to move around. I hope we earn enough in the future as to buy ourselves a better, larger ship, but for now we have to deal with what we have", finished the elf with a calm shrug, the monkey epithet clearly sliding off her without further consequence.

Once she saw she got everyone's attention, the elf started to manipulate a set of glowing balls of different colors in the console of the holoscreen. As she did, the 3D hologram shifted and data started to flow in binary as the Ship AI loaded into the viewer the data Sorschasta was looking for in the information base. Soon, it displayed a list of three contract offers, and by selecting one, the screen displayed the information and details of the job offer alongside the map of the system and planet each job was located.

"Without further ado, I'd like to start the exposition. We can discuss once I finish explaining what I've got about each contract offer and its environment", said Sorschasta, selecting the first item in the list.

The first job. Defense Against the Swarm

Star System Etronoe, Unique Searing Young Blue Star.
System Information:
- Extremely bright star outshines all other bodies, system visibility minimal, possibility of sensor array damages and limited visibility. Powerful sun winds enable fast charge and empowering of solar sails. Dust clouds and an asteroid belt gather around the star, protecting the planets from the extremely radiation emitted.

Planets:
Solar Zone:
Venetros, Molten Dwarf Planet
Etros, Deserted Gas Giant

Habitable Zone:
Etronar Inhabited Planet
Laectros Dead Dwarf Planet

Outer Zone:
Zenetros Deserted Rock Planet
Dust Clouds

Planet of Interest:
Etronar-Etronir System: A inhabited biplanetary system formed by Etronar, the main planet, and Etronir, an orbiting dwarf planet, both with modified standard gravity and breathable oxygen based rich atmosphere. Similarly terraformed, both planets have a similar hydrosphere balance, (60% water covered surface), and are covered in vast, mostly unhabited tropical jungles.

"This is default offer open by the Aelosian Navy for any currently active mercenary companies", started to explain Sorschasta. "It is basically an offer to join the Aelosian Armed Forces in a Major Campaign. As the information from the holo depicted, Etronae has currently only one inhabited planet. Originally, until one year ago, it had two. The Etronar-Etronir system and the Laectros Dwarf planet, further towards the system's Outer Zone. That was until the Swarm arrived. For those not familiar yet with what we aelosians call the Swarm, they are a semi-sentient race of insectoid beings...", and here she paused to check on the Fex as in saying not related, "...That live for consuming and reproducing and little else. Extremely adaptable, once they reach a system they proceed to consume all available organic matter in order to breed more of them, usually improved versions of themselves. That's pretty much it. We call them semi-sentient because every attempt to communicate with them so far, by every race present on this galaxy, has met tragic endings, although they do seem to be controlled by a superior intelligence, even if individuals seems to retain little or none sense of sentience. Yes, that means they are a Hive Mind. I am aware of the term. The point here is that they are basically a plague, deemed the number one threat to the Empire now, and to be frank, to the entire sentience in the galaxy as well. Several tendrils of their fleet reached the Outer Rim more or less a century ago, and have spread from there ever since. One of those must have reached Laectros through still unknown means, and managed to quickly reproduce and consume all the planet's matter, which included vast forests and an entire aelosian multiracial colony. They consumed them, and used the organic material to build ships. Then they jumped into Etronir, although the factor of surprise was not in their favor and their ships were annihilated on Etronar's outskirts by an Aelosian relief Armada, but not before they dislodged their organisms into both planets. As of now, there is a massive military effort in order to prevent the landed organisms to consume the organic matter present in the biplanetary colony, because if they manage to grow thanks to the vast tropical jungles that cover their surface, they would manage to evolve quickly and rebuild orbital defenses and even an interstellar fleet, with which they would break the blockade and infect further systems. House Mablung, one of the main military institutions of the Aelosian Empire, coordinates the defense of the planet's main population centers, and the cleansing expeditions into the jungle, and pays well. There are plenty of mercenary companies already working there".

"The rewards for this job are head-based. It means the more Swarm you kill, the more money you get. The larger or more dangerous your Swarm kills are, the more money you get. From time to time vast Swarms crawl out of the jungle and try to assault the fortified centers, while for the rest of it commando expeditions try to cull numbers and track breeding grounds or leading elements and exterminate them". Here the elf paused. "Now I give you my perspective. This is war, true and on its worst, and it has been rolling for a year. It pays well and it is high profile, but for a reason. It is extremely dangerous, as Swarm elements are amongst the deadliest creatures in the galaxy, and given the environment, practically endless. The mortality rate is staggering, and failure means you end as soup to breed larvaes. We are a small company and not equipped to deal with prostracted, attrition-like warfare in the midst of a tropical jungle planet, but if you feel like going hunting, this is the choice you have".

After letting her words sink in for a second, Sorschasta picked the second item on the list.

The second job. The Silent Platforms

Star System Nascore, Common Strong & Bright Yellow Star (K Class).
System Information:
- Nascore is a bright, sun-like star that could prove to be able to sustain life on its circling planets, but lacks any solid ones. Only two large Gas Giants orbit the system, separated a large and pretty much hard to navigate asteroid field.

Planets:
Solar Zone:
Psyphon I, Deserted Gas Giant
Biotania I Orbital Platform
Biotania II Orbital Platform

Habitable Zone:
Pethides Asteroid Belt
Biotania III Orbital Platform
Biotania IV Orbital Platform
Biotania V Orbital Platform

Outer Zone:
Biotania VI Orbital Platform

Site of Interest:
The Biotania Orbital Platforms are ancient, alien ruins found by aelosian researchers, built like artifical proto-discworlds orbiting around the Psyphon Gas Giants, but also in a remaining anomaly orbit around the system's belt, abandoned aeons ago perhaps as a consequence of mass extinction. Somehow, there were remains of ancient techonology that could be salvaged, and the initial advances were promising. Hundreds of researchers from House Cúthalion moved into the system and were able to create self-sustainable colonies upon the surfaces of all the six platforms.

"And now I will try to explain this one without bias", said Sorschasta as the holoscreen displayed the information about the Nascore System. "As all of you can put two and two together, my House, or clan if it is easier to understand...", and here she winked at Durz in an amazing display of empathy. "...Is Cúthalion, and this is a system under direct control of my kind. Scholars, the lot of them, not warriors. As the info said, they unearthed some ruins there and went to investigate. Same manure, different day for most of us", the elf added sniggering. "And you might now asking yourselves, Where is the job here?", she continued shrugging, "The point is that a month ago, Biotania sixth station went offline. Like really offline. Not only stopped broadcasting, but it also refused any messages sent by its sisters. There was a colony of over one hundred elves there, so at the start, the fact was blamed on a spatial disjunction or a technological mishap. So, as normal, the other platforms gathered an expedition of experts with a protection detail, gave them a skycutter like this one, and sent them to Psyphon's II orbit. As most have expected at this point of the story, the ship dissappeared as well, no contacts. At this point people would things be, but the system's council decided to investigate further, so this time they sent another ship with a fully armed expedition. As expected, that one dissappeared as well. A week ago, Biotania fifth station went silent as well, no contact, no response, nothing. The Council is now lacking the needed strength for another expedition, and desperate and scared. They issued a call for help to the Aelosian Navy, but given the Swarm offenssive at the Rim Systems they are stretched thin and haven't been able to send even one ship to investigate, and won't be doing so for a while. Out of options, the Council issued a trans-system reward call to any mercenary company with the guts to investigate what's happening there".

After her typical short pause, the elf went on. "As I said, I'm going to be objetive on this one. On one hand, I could had presented this one as the only job option, because I have direct interests that link me to the contracting party, but that's not how I roll. I'm really interested in both helping the Council of Scholars there and finding out what happened in the platforms, and there's a fine reward on just finding out what happened, so there's money to be earn even if we don't fire a single shot. But in the other hand, I have to highlight the almost obvious issues with this job. This is a mystery, and I don't like mysteries or running around not knowing what I am pitting my ship against. We might find something really terrible like a Swarm Tendril lurking in the outskirts of the system, or even worse, something we can't fight against, as a gravity anomaly that crushes us before we even realize what is happening. There are ships dissappearing without explanation in the zone. My inbred curiosity calls me in, but there is something inside me that tells me there is something in that system that should had been left undisturbed as well".

Shaking her head to the sides, Sorschasta decided to continue by selecting the last item on the list.

The third job. The Illustrious Hostage

Star System Sestarvis, Brilliant & Dazzling White Star (F Class)
System Information:
- Sestarvis glows with a significant power, searing the planets closer to its core, but also able to have a diverse and large habitable zone near the system's middle area. Sestarvis is an impressive military and trading hub, prosper and rich, ruling over two nearby systems from its capital planet, Asgenta. House Paelisi rules its planets, all of them old colonies of the Sindar Empire, with political intrincacies and finesse.

Planets:
Solar Zone:
Trecabos, Molten Planet with moon
Arcabos, Molten Dwarf Planet
Larandel, Deserted Gas Giant with two deserted moons

Habitable Zone:
Mirandel, Gas Giant with moon
Asgenta, Inhabited Planet with two inhabited moons and Artificial Moon
Nialia, Inhabited Planet with Artificial Moon
Comet Sheoth

Outer Zone:
Clepovis, Ringed Gas Giant
Lastion, Fortress Dwarf Planet
Clirath Orbital Base
Glorath Orbital Base
Kiarath Orbital Base

Site of Interest:
Asgenta, the Paelisi Flower, is the ruling hub of a dozen of inhabited planets in three different systems, and one of the main physical holdings of the House Paelisi, the diplomats of the Aelosian Empire. A prosperous planet, it lives off not only of its manufactured deluxe products, but also of trading every kind of goods, from Nialian timber to Forleth High Technology goods. As expected, it is a heavily populated, and also well defended, star system. It has a full Fortress Planet on its outskirts, flanked by three orbital shipyards, the producers of both civilian and military spaceships in great measure.

"And now we have what I label as the gem of our short list so far", said Sorschasta with a mischievous smile. "Asgenta, the jewel on the tiara of the aelosian ambassadors and their main colonial system. Pretty close to our current location as well, even if the grim scrapyard seems too off to the magnificent Paelisi Palaces of the Trading Elite. I know what are you thinking, Why an extremely well defended system, base of mighty elven fleets is asking for mercenaries? It is not like they are missing troops, don't they? They are one of the best defended and garrisoned systems in the entire empire. But here's the catch. Two months ago, the shuttle where the second son of the Asgentan Governor's Heir, was assaulted by unknown parties and the crew disposed off in a professional manner. The craft was found mere hours later by an imperial inter-system patrol, all hands deceased but for their cherished Prince of the Blood. Three days after the incident, a group identified as the Dispossessed of Arbor claimed to have been involved in the kidnapping of the Prince, and to have him on custody, giving up details about the raid that only the perpetrators might had known. As expected, furious negotiations follow, and conditions are established. Finally, some sort of exchange is arranged, but this group manages to get their share and not turn on the Prince, but another aelosian citizen, remarkably physically similar to the Prince, that confessed to have been abducted and kept in a ship for several days. After a monetary ransom is demanded, and another round of lenghty negotiations, another exchange ends with the group taking the money but not turning in their hostage. As further demands were issued, the Paelisi ran out of patience, and trust on their own forces, and issued a reward on whoever gets the Prince back alive, and the Dispossessed killed. This reward offer is way larger than any of the others, but it is only awarded on a total success. Means that if the Prince is killed, or if he already is, as I personally suspect, there's no money to be won. And that risk is the main flaw of taking this job. We might be losing our time. Also, such rich reward should be calling mercenary companies from all over the Empire like moths to a flame, so we can expect heavy competition on this one".

Sorschasta here turned off the holoscreen, and looked at the rest of the members of the Company. "Well, those are the job offers. And all the information I have on them. Further data have to be acquired on the field, and as you might already inferred, some of these offers are time sensitive. I have to broadcast acceptance of the offer to be considered contenders for the rewards, so we have to decide now on which path to take. Do any of you have anything to add or do we vote now?", she asked with a final glance to each of the assembled members.

[Lunas Legion]

The Fex waited for a few seconds, considering his options, before reluctantly flying down from the perch. Stupid Conquerors wouldn't know a good perch if you dropped one on their heads. But the points raised were at least sensible, even if not being able to use the vents was going to probably lead to his eventual demise.

A Fex that wasn't able to use small confined spaces or height to hide in was a very, very dead Fex.

The habitats that the Conqueror weren't that much better; too close to the ground, cage-like, not interlinked. No Fex worth the name would live in them.

Living on top of them, well, that was another matter entirely. They were moderately high, not close enough to the ceiling to get fried, but high enough for a decent nest. On the way over he diverted into one of the currently unused containers, pilfering a pillow from it which he grasped between his legs as he flew over to and landed atop the habitats, dropping the pillow on top of them. It would do.

Then the Conqueror mentioned contracts. Finally. What he was here for. Killing things. He glided down, alighting on the floor in a relatively clear area and silently watching. Her vaguely-concerned glance about another hive minded species went unnoticed; Fex simply didn't care for other races any more. They blended together in their memories, only those who had committed actions so drastic like the Conquerors forming unique identities.

The second contract was what he could do. Fex thrived on space stations for a good reason, and this would just be more of that. Besides, who needed to consider what they might find? They would find whatever they would find. What it was didn't really matter.

The third wasn't exactly his thing either. Sure, he could find the hostage, but he was better at killing hostages than saving them. Plus it was going deep into Conqueror territory, and, well, they tended not to tread Free Fex all that well.

In the end, there was only really one option. Two chips signalled his choice.

[Levis Avara]

Nebula Mare

Kayra was just absultutly in love with the Nebula Mare it was simply gorgeous, and held a certain grace that the Minnion ship lacked. Being beamed to launch bay was comfortable and smooth enough, and she soon got off her Void shifter joing the rest of the crew. "SHE'S BEAUTIFUL" she heard Miesrel say " Yep this here baby is mine" She said proudly touching the Void shifter "You can take a tour inside if you like your Hisen so I wouldn't be surprised if you knew the ship like the back of your hand" She said smiling to Miresel. She then took her stuff and carried it to a random free room, the rooms where small, at least to what she was used to, and certainly less luxurious then what she's used to but she didn't join the Scions for bon bons and golden decorations, and it was certainly comfortable enough to live in. She soon joined with the rest of the group afterwards.

[Great Confederacy of Commonwealth States]

Bolklov snorted at the mention of a hostage situation. The whole story reeked of incompetence. He remembered dealing with certain terrorist groups in his day. Those would capture high-value targets all the time. He remembered the civil administrations, too. Those always tried negotiating their way out of a crisis. Never ever negotiate with someone who got their goods through illegal means, it is a reward for criminal behaviour. No, Bolklov and his regiment knew how to deal with those people. Sure, it had cost them a few high-value lives, but the total number of hostage situations always dramatically decreased when the Taurans came to establish law and order. He worked hard for that reputation, and he would not see it tarnished.

“Those Sestarvis fools have left the principle of non-negotiation to rot. It is something I have worked very hard for in my time” Bolklov said, a hint of anger flowing with the words he spoke.

“Not only do they bring shame to themselves, they give away their power advantage with every passing day. They tarnish the name of the criminal response of the Empire. This is something I would not have allowed, were I to command the Storm Regiment. Alas, I know that I am but a member of this company. Nevertheless, I would suggest we settle matters there as soon as possible. The longer that situation continues, the less they get the chance to respond. Insurrection must be dealt with in the bud. My vote is for the third option.”

He sat down at the nearest free spot on the floor. The elven chairs and couches were not really made for his stature, and neither was the hall they were standing in. Sometimes, his horns would scrape some low-hanging part of machinery, or some aesthetically-pleasing curves in the hallways. For the second time that year, he needed to keep his head low, be it somewhat more literal this time. As he sat down, he weighed his options. Sure, the first option was better for him. Large battles against a superior and threatening foe, those would lead to his name becoming one to be reckoned with. The stories of Bolklov Storm fighting the unending hoards of Tendrils would make for good songs on Tannenheim. Those fights were most in line with his goals. Yet, there was also the feeling of loyalty he still had to order in the empire. Never leaving business unfinished would also become an important part of his name.

The most pivotal consideration, however, had to do with the rest of the company. He didn’t know if he could trust them. He didn’t know their strengths yet, their weaknesses. Ragnar he had seen, and he was not ready for a large fight. Too unruly. The others he had no heading on, save the scarce assumptions he could make based on race. Orcs, Elves… He would have to see what the worth was of each of their members. And the best way to do that would be a simple mission against crooks and criminals. Going into full-on battle against Tendrils would be suicide without them knowing each other for a moment. He looked around the room. To see what each of them would vote for would be the first clue to their personality.

[Brusia]

After D'vok's tour was cut short when the elevator responded with a brusque "Access Denied" in the Sindarin language when he attempted to get to the Bridge, he turned back to the meeting area and waited for the briefing to start. Once the other mercenaries in the new company arrived, the Aelosian Captain began the briefing. D'vok listened intently as she detailed the three contracts currently available to them, evaluating each option as it was presented. When the briefing was finished, he listened as the Fex chirped to indicate his choice and as the Tauran weighed in on which contract he believed the company should take. Having pondered the options for a sufficient amount of time, D'vok spoke up to voice his choice:

"I vote for the third option as well. Given that the war between the Aelosians and the Swarm is unlikely to end anytime soon, and as most mercenary companies are unlikely to take on a contract with as much uncertainty as the second, I think it likely those contracts will be available to us for some time. As the third contract almost certainly will not, I believe it is the most logical choice. Plus, successful completion of that contract while competing against more well-known mercenary companies would go a long way towards improving our reputation and getting our names out there."

Like Colonel Storm, D'vok had additional reasons for choosing the third option which he left unsaid. He too had been in enough battles to realize that dropping the company into a warzone right now would almost certainly get everyone killed. While the second contract certainly piqued his interest, the fact that a ship with a fully armed expedition was among those to disappear concerned him. Before taking that contract he wanted to do some research into the area and any similar disappearances, plus much like the first contract the company would likely need experience working with each other to have a chance of succeeding.

[Pyrade]

Miriel
Miriel smiled gratefully to Kayra as she gave her permission to examine the space cruiser. It would be good fun for her to inspect a Hisen creation after so many years away from her homeworld. One didn't see much high-quality tech in her line of work. Even tech-priests had to watch their budget, and she hadn't had much luck with her last bunch. Especially after they had found out about her incident back home.
Not like they've never killed a man. . .
She thought bitterly as her cybernetically enhanced mind allowed a part of itself to wander whilst the rest gathered at the odd seating area. She wasn't sure what she thought of the Charmagnan honestly, he seemed pretty crass, and quite loud mouthed. Dangerous in covert operations, but if he gave her any lip she knew exactly how she'd deal with it. But that was for another time. The Tauran was interesting, he seemed to have illusions of grandeur if the way he spoke of the "Sestarvis fools" was anything to go on. She kept silent for the time being, but couldn't help smirking slightly at the verbosity with which Bolklov voiced his choice, that and she was feeling quite happy with this group. So far nobody had attempted to steal her staff, her vehicle or sell her on some slave market, but the cycle was still young.

She turned from the group to her own dataslate that was held in the mechadendrite claw. The second option was indeed intriguing, and promising tech-wise, who knew what treasures lay on those research stations. Possible xenotech she could get her hands on . . . But what Sorchasta said was true, there was no telling what awaited them on the silent Botania station. She opened a smile dataset, the one related to Felicity, and paged through the details while D'Vok voiced his opinion. Fuel would hold out for now, but she was still halfway through revamping the APC, which could always use a little more cash. She flipped to another Dataset, this one carrying her own name and examined the details. Her eyes glowed blue briefly and the pulse of data flowed down her neck out to her shoulders and down her arms to her hands where it entered the data slate and updated the details with the new information influenced by the group. Food would be livable, accommodations were supplied and satisfactory, and money would hopefully be sorted out.

Miriel looked up from the dataslate as D'Vok finished, fixing her eyes upon each of her companions at the table as she put the final pieces into her consideration. She did not trust any of them of course, firstly they had just met, secondly, they were all mercenaries, sellswords, wagemages, whatever you called it. But she did trust they all wanted the reward, and didn't like dying either . . . Except the Fex, she didn't know what to say about him . . . Her? . . . It. She simply hoped it would leave her dear Felicity alone. A small sound emitted from Miriel as she cleared her throat,
"I shall admit, the second option has my curiosity. I wish to see what kind of environment these stations have, but the chances of us never getting a chance to spend our reward are quite high. I shall vote for the third. As our Tauran friend said so eloquently, the protoform gloves are off. And if the prince is dead, I'm sure the kidnappers have some odds and ends lying around we could take instead. No sense letting the dead keep it."
She said with a shrug and a gentle smile as she shifted slightly in her exquisite, albeit slightly musty, robes.
"Perhaps afterwards we could take a look at the Botania station? I sorely wish to retrieve some of this ancient xenotech."
Miriel concluded before she sat back on the lounger once more, allowing herself to process the choices a little more.

[Aelosia]

Sorschasta watched as the Fex placed his vote with two chips. The fact he had managed to find a way to issue his vote without speaking made her raise an eyebrow. As a note to self, she remembered that Bew, or Bez oe whatever it could be spelled in any language, was smarter than he looked, a fact that she would take into account in the future.

Then she listened to what Boklhov had to say as he started to speak. In fact, she knew the opinion of the Tauran was going to weight quite a bit for the others. Once he finished issuing his vote for the third option, Sorschasta just added her bit on the Aelosian Empire's inner workings. "The House Paelisi on control of that system is called the House of Courtiers for a reason. Negotiating is what they do best, and they try to apply diplomatic solutions to all issues. In fact, they were the faction of the Empire interested in contacting the Swarm diplomatically. You can guess how well that went for them. For plenty of people, me included, this group, the Dispossessed or whatever they are called, chose that system to kidnap a noble precisely of that reason. They knew they were going to negotiate, and keep negotiating even after being scammed because it's on their nature. Plenty of other aelosian Houses would had just hunted them down, no negotiations made. It means that whoever we are dealing with is both smart, and knows the particularities of the Empire's factions well, perhaps an insider's job. Being more of a pragmatic myself, I couldn't agree more with the fact that a more direct, violent approach is in order", said the elf nodding sagely, clearly in accord with the view exposed by the Tauran.

Then it came D'vok's turn. Sorschasta was actually impressed by the cold logic and well thought argument the Ramulon made for his choice. She had been analyzing the information abut the contracts before, and she hadn't actually thought of the angle with which D'vok had tackled the issue. In fact, yes, the third option was the most time-sensitive, and it was a factor to be taken into account. In fact, that simple argumentation was already swindling her own opinion towards an specific choice...

As Miriel spoke, Sorschasta switched her attention to her immediately. The Hisen was someone she identified herself with, and to a measure, trusted. Kayra and Miriel were the closest minds to her own, in a way, although she knew that the Techpriestess was quite a complicated being, if judging by her race's characteristics was allowed. She was surprised she had decanted for the third option when the second was the one most promising for the Hisen's own ambitions of scavenging exotic technology. Again, the reasoning was quite on point, and that was the drop that finally swung the elf's opinion as well.

Clarifying her throat with a weird whistling sound, Sorschasta decided to take her turn on speaking at this point. "I've decided not to issue my vote at the start as to not influence your own decisions, and neither to leave it for the last, as I didn't want to take advantage in expecting my vote to break ties. So I will do it now. As I said before, my own House is involved in the second contract, so my personal interests lie there, but the points you have raised so far have been extremely convincing. I shall vote for the third option as well, given it is the most time sensitive, located in the safest point of the sector, offers the best reward in both reputation and money terms, and will have the strongest impact in internal aelosian politics", said the elf in a very matter-of-fact way, quoting the reasons offered by the last three speakers, all pretty good and fair on their own. "So far, we are four in favor of the third option, and one in favor of the second. Let's keep voting until we get a final decision on this".

As Sorschasta finished speaking, the spider droids appeared in the lounge area, sporting refreshments on their multiple limbs and resting in plates over their torso. For food, one of them carried slighty roasted thick slices of some sort of meat, red looking and saucy, as well as carefully cooked blue rice and orange noodles with salted vegetables in steaming pots, joined with a woven basket with lembas biscuits inside. The other carried three containers one filled with a bright turquoise liquid, with a faint alcoholic smell, another with a black solution eerily similar to caffeine, and the third with clean water. Everything seemed to be fresh, for sure some sort of catering the elf had recently acquired, and not the typical ship rations, that tended to be tasteless and less...Luxurious. For sure the Captain was interested in getting everyone in a good mood during the first gathering.

[Kaidou]

It was a no-brainer that Yngvarr would have, of course, turned up for the meeting. After all, he didn't join a mercenary group to lounge about in a room.

Still in his No. 3 uniform, the old warrant officer stood at the back of the group, leaning on his pace stick as he listened to Sorschasta's explanation of the three available missions that they could undertake. They all seemed attractive; after all, he had had experience in all sorts of missions during his decades long tenure in the Army; if it weren't for his more advanced age, he was sure he could pull off any of them.

Yet, he had a feeling in his gut which told him that, for one reason or another, the third mission would be the best one. Yngvarr wasn't sure why; perhaps it was because extraction missions thrilled him? Perhaps it was the prestige of working under these elite persons? Surely it couldn't be the latter; Yngvarr, being a down-to-earth sort of person, generally didn't like the chinless wonders who sat at the top of society's ladder picking the cherries out of the sundaes.

So clearly, it was the thrill. Or was it?

In any case, Yngvarr believed that it would probably be a good idea to make his opinion known sooner than later.

"I would say", he said, "that we should go with the third option. The risk may be large, but I'm pretty sure the reward will be large. Besides, I could always help you negotiate something if you want…"

…

Some years ago

He didn't care.

For too long, he had been stuck in the training role, a role that he had absolutely despised, not just because of its monotony and the (seemingly) decreasing quality of the new batches of trainees that came in every year, but also due to the fact that he was still in his prime. If it were't for that ankle of his, he would bemoan to his friends, Senior Staff Sergeant Yngvarr Mangchir would be on the front lines, where he belonged.

Week after week, Yngvarr hounded the school's doctor, requesting for tests and retests and re-retests. Each time, the same detestable report card came back in the innocuous white envelope: SS/SGT Yngvarr Mangchir: Unfit for Combat

He had had enough.

Using the money that he had stockpiled from his bonuses (which he never failed to scrape in each year), Yngvarr stormed to the Military Hospital, where he demanded that they amputate his bad leg and replace it with a state of the art, military grade prosthetic. The doctors were stunned, but they couldn't object, since he was, technically, injured. Besides, he outranked every single one of them. As such, they had no choice but to carry on with the procedure.

"Anything else you'd like to bring up, sir?" (Senior Staff Sergeants were considered warrant officers, and thus, had to be addressed as "sir".)

"Yes. Once you've amputated my leg, go and destroy the goddamn thing for stealing 7 years of my life."